Aston Villa: Why have goals dried up with Villa failing to score in opening Premier League games for first time since 2002
Aston Villa have failed to score in their opening two Premier League games for the first time since 2002, so what is failing to click at Villa Park? Watch Aston Villa vs Crystal Palace live from 6pm on Sky Sports Premier League on Sunday, kick-off 7pm
Monday 1 September 2025 20:32, UK
It is never advisable to read too much into a narrative two games into a season, especially with the Premier League transfer window still open and Deadline Day set to be one of the busiest in history on Monday afternoon.
But there are still stories of note even this early in a campaign. Aston Villa's start to the season is one of them.
The focus of last weekend's defeat at Brentford was the backs-to-the-wall defensive performance of Keith Andrews' new side, which overshadowed deeper-lying concerns within the Villa ranks. No wins, and more worryingly no goals - something which hasn't been seen in back-to-back league games since May 2023.
The stats would suggest Villa were unfortunate in a match where they racked up 17 shots but this is not a problem of finishing. The quality of their efforts, according to both xG and the eye test, was among the worst of Unai Emery's 104 league games in charge.
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That performance added to an underwhelming season opener with Newcastle, during which Villa mustered just three shots all game and a combined xG of 0.2. More damningly, Villa were worse with 11 vs 11 than after losing Ezri Konsa to a straight red card.
Two games is a small sample size but this is already the first time Villa have failed to win their opening double in six years and the manner of the performances is providing the most concern, and has a level of inevitability given the wider context.
Villa have lost two of their most influential players from the second half of last season in loanees Marcus Rashford and Marco Asensio, while Jacob Ramsey has been sold to help balance the PSR books and Leon Bailey, often out of form in 2024/25 but always a threat with his raw pace out wide, departing on loan.
Without the necessary tools at his disposal, the tactics which Emery has championed throughout his career are being called into question too. John McGinn played on the right at the Gtech and looked uncomfortable. Emery has defended his role given he competently filled in there during 2023/24, but it was never his best position and he is arguably not the player he was then.
Villa have never loved facing low blocks and after defeat in west London Emergy pointed out the similarities between their previous visits - and true enough, they have scored more than once only once in five Premier League games at the Gtech.
But whereas they had still possessed enough quality to win two of Emery's three games there, Villa's predictability coupled with their lack of creative quality left McGinn's snapshot from a corner their only effort of note. Caoimhin Kelleher could have barely wished for a more hospitable home debut.
Andrews' approach was well-structured but not rocket science. He deployed a notional back four but Dango Outtara's man-marking role on Lucas Digne meant he often joined his defensive colleagues with Michael Kayode pushed inside.
With the left-back muzzled, more responsibility was placed on the shoulders of Morgan Rogers and McGinn - but with one out of form and the other unsuited to his role, both floundered. Emi Buendia was a surprise early addition following Boubacar Kamara's injury but he offered little more before suffering the ignominy of becoming a substituted substitute as Villa pushed for an equaliser.
That overall lack of creativity and tempo stifled Villa to the point forward Ollie Watkins had the fewest touches of any outfield player. This is becoming somewhat of a blueprint to beat Villa - refuse to play them at their own game.
When Emery first took charge almost three years ago, he immediately drew plaudits with the way his high line and mid-block suffocated opponents' build-up on the ball, and invited them to press Villa's defenders off it given the potential rewards on offer.
Over time, opposition managers have overseen a gradual decline in their willingness to press Villa, focusing instead on stifling them. Andrews' Brentford were particularly adept, with Nathan Collins leading a low block which they rarely looked likely to breach.
Emery's preference is to prioritise central build-up with one player - often Digne - out wide. With opponents remaining more compact, and especially where that player is shackled so effectively, Villa can be stifled. Perhaps Andrews had been taking notes from the Newcastle game, where Tyrone Mings had more entries into the final third than his full-back.
The loss of Rashford has likewise taken away more raw pace and direct running which Villa's current wide players cannot replace. With Bailey absent, Donyell Malen is yet to find real consistency at the club.
There have been suggestions Rogers' form has been impacted by the loss of team-mate and close friend Ramsey, whose shock sale to Newcastle earlier this month came only days after Villa offered the boyhood Villain a new contract.
The England winger is too talented to remain on the fringes of games for too long, while new boy Evann Guessand is still yet to make his first start - though he showed flashes at the Gtech.
Questions have been asked whether Emery will - or should - change his ways, and even with another difficult summer of recruitment there is no doubt Villa should be performing better than this.
But this is the style that he has lived and died by his whole career. With the players he has at his disposal back in form, and ideally some additional arrivals before Monday evening, there is no reason it cannot get back to breaking down stubborn backlines again.
Watch Aston Villa vs Crystal Palace live on Sky Sports Premier League from 6pm on Sunday, kick-off 7pm.
